1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system for acquiring semiconductor process status information, and in particular to a system and method for converting semiconductor process status information to standard industrial protocol.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is important for semiconductor manufacturers to maintain yield and quantity of output from semiconductor equipment. Monitor procedures comprise acquiring semiconductor process status information on demand.
Semiconductor manufacturers utilizing computer integrated manufacturing systems normally acquire semiconductor process status information through SECS/GEM protocol, but some status values are not obtainable thereby, and must be acquired by external sensors, and manually reported.
Computer integrated manufacturing systems cannot, therefore, acquire complete semiconductor process status information from semiconductor equipment installations through SEC/GEM protocol. Operations are often missed thereby, decreasing efficiency and creating many potential problems, including possible production stoppage.